Functionality during a hold period prior to a customer-service video conference

ABSTRACT

Embodiments of the invention are directed to systems, methods and computer program products for providing functionality to users during a hold period prior to conducting a customer-service video conference. In specific embodiments of the present invention, the user is able to exit the video conferencing application during the hold period and be subsequently notified when the hold period is about to end and the video conference about to start. Such exiting of the video conference application and subsequent notification of the imminence of the video conference, allows for the user to perform other functions/execute other applications on the device while being assured that the user will have opportunity to conduct the video conference when the user&#39;s position in the hold period queue indicates they are next in line for conducting the video conference.

FIELD

In general, embodiments herein disclosed relate to communications and,more specifically, providing functionality to users/customers during ahold period prior to a customer-service video conference.

BACKGROUND

With the advent of video camera functionality on many computing devices,including handheld computing devices, such as smart telephones, tabletdevices and the like, the ability to conduct video conferencing indifferent contexts has flourished. Specifically, such video conferencingcapabilities provides a platform for conducting live customer-servicevideo conferences as opposed to conducting audio only communication viaa telephonic customer-service interaction.

Not unlike the audio-only telephone customer-service interaction, in thevideo conferencing setting, the user/customer will often require beingplaced “on hold” prior to conducting the video conference due to thelimited capacity of customer service associates tasked with conductingthe video conferences. However, unlike the audio-only telephonecustomer-experience in which the hold period is generally limited toproviding the user/customer with an audio experience, such as music,news or the like, video conferencing offers many opportunities in termsof enhancing the hold period. Such enhancement of the hold period isespecially relevant since a video conference is typically conducted on acomputing device (such as PC, laptop, tablet, smart phone or the like)which is configured for multitask functionality, such that theuser/customer may remain productive throughout or at least be engaged inanother activity during the hold period.

Therefore, a need exists to develop methods, apparatus, computer programproducts and the like that will enhance the user/customer experienceduring the hold period prior to conducting a video conference. Thedesired aspects of the invention should allow for the user to conductother functions while waiting on hold for the video conference to begin.In addition to remaining productive during the hold period, the desiredmethods, apparatus and computer program products should provide theuser/customer with useful information pertinent to the impending videoconference.

BRIEF SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary of one or more embodimentsin order to provide a basic understanding of such embodiments. Thissummary is not an extensive overview of all contemplated embodiments,and is intended to neither identify key or critical elements of allembodiments nor delineate the scope of any or all embodiments. Its solepurpose is to present some concepts of one or more embodiments in asimplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that ispresented later.

Apparatus, methods and computer program products are defined thatprovide for functionality during a hold period prior to acustomer-service video conference. Specifically, according to definedembodiments, the present invention allows for users that are on holdawaiting a video conference to exit the video conference application andto subsequently be notified, by a visual alert, audio alert,re-appearance of the video conference application or the like, justprior to initiating the video conference. By exiting the videoconference application the user can perform any other function and/orexecute any other application on the device running the video conferenceapplication without jeopardizing their place in the hold queue.

An apparatus for providing information to a user during a hold periodassociated with a customer-service video conference defines firstembodiments of the invention. The apparatus includes a computingplatform having a memory and a processing device in communication withthe memory. The apparatus further includes a customer-service videoconferencing application stored in the memory and executable by theprocessing device. The application is configured to cause the processingdevice to (1) receive a first input from a user that is configured torequest a video conference with a customer-service associate, (2) inresponse to receiving the first input, place the user on hold awaitingthe video conference based on the customer-service associate beingcurrently unavailable, (3) receive, during the hold period, a secondinput from the user that is configured to allow the user to exit thecustomer-service video application while remaining on hold, and (4)while the user is external from the customer-service video application,notify the user of an imminence of the video conference based on animpending availability of the customer service associate.

In specific embodiments of the apparatus, the customer-service videoconferencing application may be further configured to cause theprocessing device to notify the user by one or more of an audionotification/alert, a visual notification/alert or a return presentationof the customer-service video application.

In additional embodiments of the apparatus, the customer-service videoconferencing application is further configured to cause the processingdevice to, in response to placing the user on hold, provide a visualdepiction of a queue of users currently awaiting a video conference withthe customer-service representative. The depiction of the queue of userscurrently awaiting the video conference may indicate the number of userscurrently waiting and, in some embodiment, a proximate hold time for theuser. In specific embodiments of the apparatus, the proximate hold timemay be dynamically adjusted (either increased or decreased) by thecustomer-service associate based on the actual time for a videoconference conducted with the users who were in the queue of usersawaiting video conferencing with the customer service associate.

In other embodiments of the apparatus, the customer-service videoconferencing application is further configured to cause the processingdevice to provide, during the hold period, suggestions for one or moreother customer-service associates, wherein the other customer-serviceassociates currently have shorter hold periods than the customer-serviceassociate. In those embodiments in which the user selected a specificcustomer-service associate or attributes associated with acustomer-service associate, the suggestions of the othercustomer-service associated may be based on other customer-serviceassociated having the same or similar attributes.

In still further specific embodiments of the apparatus, thecustomer-service video conferencing application is further configured tocause the processing device to provide the user a capability to pausethe hold period. Pausing the hold period allows for the user to not losetheir place in the queue in the event that something occurs while theuser is in the queue that may prohibit the user from conducting thevideo conference if the normal course of the queue was allowed toproceed.

In other specific embodiments of the apparatus, the customer-servicevideo conferencing application is further configured to cause theprocessing device to provide the user, during the hold period, access toone or more video presentations, wherein the video presentations areassociated with a user-requested video conference category. For example,if the user desires a video conference to ask questions related to ahome mortgage loan, the video presentations may be associated withcertain aspects of the home mortgage loan and/or the loan applicationprocess. In other embodiments, one or more of the video presentationsmay be conducted by a customer-service associate selected by the userfor the impending video conference. In such instances the videopresentation may be an introduction video by the selectedcustomer-service associate or the like.

In other specific embodiments of the apparatus, the customer-servicevideo conferencing application is further configured to cause theprocessing device to provide the user, during the hold period, serviceconfiguration options, including at least one of connection speed,quality of video, or quality of audio. In other specific embodiments ofthe apparatus, the customer-service video conferencing application isfurther configured to cause the processing device to provide the user,during the hold period, a data consumption indicator configured toestimate one or more of a rate or amount of data to be consumed duringthe video conference. In addition to the data consumption indicator, thecustomer-service video conferencing application may be furtherconfigured to cause the processing device to provide options forchanging the network for the video conference (i.e., from the cellularnetwork to a Wi-Fi network) and/or suggestions for foregoing the videoconference in favor of an audio/telephone conference.

In still further specific embodiments of the apparatus, thecustomer-service video conferencing application is further configured tocause the processing device to provide the user, during the hold period,a listing of one or more actions for the user to take during the holdperiod in preparation for the impending video conference. For example,the user may be instructed to gather certain specific documents,complete and upload certain specific forms/documents forcustomer-service associate review, approval or the like.

In other specific embodiments of the apparatus, the customer-servicevideo conferencing application is further configured to cause theprocessing device to provide the user, during the hold period, one ormore widgets for one of onsite or off-site research associated with theimpending video conference. For example, a widget may provide for linksto allow for off-site research associated with the category/topic whichthey user desires to discuss during the video conference. In anotherexample, in which the video conference is associated with financialinstitution the widget may provide for the user to conduct onlinebanking, check balances or the like.

A method for providing information to a user during a hold periodassociated with a customer-service video conference, defines secondembodiments of the invention, the method includes (1) receiving a firstinput from a user that is configured to request a video conference witha customer-service associate, (2) in response to receiving the firstinput, placing the user on hold awaiting the video conference based onthe customer-service associate being currently unavailable, (3)receiving, by a computing device processor, during the hold period, asecond input from the user that is configured to allow the user to exitthe customer-service video application while remaining on hold, and (4)while the user is external from the customer-service video application,notifying, by a computing device processor, the user of an imminence ofthe video conference based on an impending availability of the customerservice associate.

A computer program product for providing information to a user during ahold period associated with a customer-service video conference, definesthird embodiments of the invention. The computer program productincludes a non-transitory computer-readable medium. The medium includesa set of codes for causing a computer to (1) receive a first input froma user that is configured to request a video conference with acustomer-service associate, (2) in response to receive the first input,place the user on hold awaiting the video conference based on thecustomer-service associate being currently unavailable, (3) receive,during the hold period, a second input from the user that is configuredto allow the user to exit the customer-service video application whileremaining on hold and (4) while the user is external from thecustomer-service video application, notify the user of an imminence ofthe video conference based on an impending availability of the customerservice associate.

Thus, as described in more details below, apparatus, methods andcomputer program products are defined that provide functionality tousers during a hold period prior to conducting a customer-service videoconference on a tablet device, cellular telephone, personal or laptopcomputer or any other networked device having video conferencecapability. In specific embodiments of the present invention, the useris able to exit the video conferencing application during the holdperiod and be subsequently notified when the hold period is about to endand the video conference about to start. Such exiting of the videoconference application and subsequent notification of the imminence ofthe video conference, allows for the user to perform otherfunctions/execute other applications on the device executing the videoconference application while being assured that the user will haveopportunity to conduct the video conference when the user's position inthe hold period queue indicates they are next in line for conducting thevideo conference. As such the user is able to remain productivethroughout the hold period and does not have to limit their productivityduring the hold period to functionality provided by the video conferenceapplication. In addition, the notification process lessens thelikelihood of the user missing their turn in the queue when the user isperforming a function external to the video conference application.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the one or moreembodiments comprise the features hereinafter fully described andparticularly pointed out in the claims. The following description andthe annexed drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative featuresof the one or more embodiments. These features are indicative, however,of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of variousembodiments may be employed, and this description is intended to includeall such embodiments and their equivalents.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Having thus described embodiments of the invention in general terms,reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, where:

FIG. 1 is a flow diagram of a method for providing a video conferencebetween a financial institution customer and a financial institutionassociate; according to embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a system for providing a video conferencebetween a user/customer and a customer service associate; according toembodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an apparatus configured for allowing a userto exit a video conference application while on hold and notifying theuser when their position in the hold queue is about to be up, inaccordance with embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an apparatus configured for providingsplit-screen presentation of information and/or functionality to auser/customer during a hold period while awaiting a customer servicevideo conference, in accordance with embodiments of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an apparatus highlighting alternativeembodiments of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a block diagram depiction of a split screen presentation ofinformation/functionality during a hold period prior to a customerservice video presentation, in accordance with embodiments of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the invention now may be described more fully hereinafterwith reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not all,embodiments of the invention are shown. Indeed, the invention may beembodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limitedto the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments areprovided so that this disclosure may satisfy applicable legalrequirements. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

Embodiments of the invention enable users/customers to interact withcustomer service associates over video conferencing and/or audioconferencing using a conferencing application running on, for example, anetwork server and/or the customer's notebook computer. In certainspecific embodiments the video conference is conducted between afinancial institution associate/representative and a financialinstitution customer. The variety of features may provide a customer anunprecedented balance of convenience, personalization, and exceptionalcustomer service. Before or at the beginning of a call, a customer isgiven a set of representatives, also referred to herein as a customerservice associate. The customer may select a representative based oninformation provided about the representatives such as their numbers ofyears of experience. While the customer is waiting for the call tocommence, the customer may be provided information indicating theirposition in a hold queue and/or the wait time until the call commencesand may be given relevant information or links to information using theconference application, such as by a split screen showing relevantinformation as well as hold time information. In some cases, thecustomer is given an opportunity to play games or navigate the Internetfor topics related or unrelated to the topic of the call.

Once on a call, customers are given an opportunity to view and editdocuments related to the call. In some instances, customers maycollaborate on document creation and modification with therepresentative and the representative (or customer) may be able to pointout sections of relevant documents to the customer such as byhighlighting or inserting notes. The conferencing application may alsogenerate an electronic call summary that may be specialized for therepresentative or the customer. This call summary may record the spokenwords and convert them to text and correlate the text with the otherinteractions between the customer and the representative, for example,noting within the call log that the representative presented thecustomer with a specific document at a particular point in theconversation. The conferencing application may enable a customer toschedule a future conference with a representative with whom thecustomer has previously interacted (referred to as a “primaryrepresentative”) or with a representative recommended by the primaryrepresentative. In some situations it may be advantageous for theconference to switch devices and/or include additional participants, sothe conference application provides the customer flexibility inforwarding the call to other devices or back to the original deviceand/or inviting other participants onto the call.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a flowchart illustrates a process flow 100representing the fundamental stages of a customer's interaction with abusiness entity, which in this example is a financial institution. AtBlock 110, the customer is triggered to contact the financialinstitution. Typically, the customer has a question about a financialproduct such as a product the customer is considering or a product thecustomer already owns. Whatever triggers the customer to initiatecontact with the financial institution provides context for theconference regarding subject matter and may also provide the environmentand circumstances surrounding the customer. Accordingly, variousembodiments of the conferencing application were designed to address theneeds and concerns of those customers who initiate conferences with thefinancial institution based on triggers. In order to maximize thecustomer experience and satisfaction with the conference application,and based in part on the triggers to the customer, the conferenceapplication, in some embodiments, ensures that the customer can make apersonal connection with one or more financial institutionrepresentatives who may be able to provide expert advice to the customerregarding complex products or issues over a private and secure platformthat overcomes common challenges to existing video technologies.

At Block 120 the customer initiates a conference with the financialinstitution using the conference application. The customer, having beentriggered by an interest in a product or a question about a product orotherwise, may want to speak with a customer service representative. Thecustomer, however, may not want to take the time to physically visit abrick and mortar financial institution location. The conferenceapplication provides an alternative to visiting a physical locationalong with numerous advantages to doing so such as the ability toelectronically create and edit documents in collaboration with arepresentative.

In order to initiate a conference, a customer may use a customer devicesuch as a computing device like a computer (desktop, laptop, tablet orthe like), a smartphone or other computing device as represented bycomputing device 210 of FIG. 2. The computing device may have a videoconference application installed in its memory. The video conferenceapplication may also be installed and running on one or more financialinstitution servers such that customers running the video conferenceapplication on a customer device can communicate with the conferenceapplication running at the financial institution or other businessentity. The video conference application for the customer device may bethe same or different than the conference application running on thenetworked servers.

The video conference application provides the customer an opportunity toselect a representative with whom to “speak” in some embodiments.Several representatives may be presented to the customer in a list ofrepresentatives. In some embodiments, each of the representatives arepresented by display of a still, moving, and/or live picture of therepresentative as well as some information about the representative. Insome cases, the representative's professional qualifications andexperience are presented to the customer for consideration, and in somecases, additional information about the representative is presented. Forexample, personal interest information may be presented, for example,the representative's hobbies, location, and favorite sports teams orfavorite television shows may be presented to the customer forconsideration. Once the customer has selected a representative to speakwith, the application may, in the event that the customer serviceassociate is not immediately available, place the customer “on hold” foran impending conference with the representative or may present thecustomer with a date and time in the future for scheduling a call withthe representative. The application may then remind the customer of thescheduled call in a variety of ways, such as using electronic calendarentries, alarms and the like. Either prior to an immediate call, animpending call in which the user/customer is placed on hold or ascheduled call, the customer may input some pre-call information toprovide context for the call with the representative.

In some cases, such as for a premier customer, the application mayprovide all of the customer service associates assigned to the customeror with whom the customer has previously spoken. For example, the loanofficer, the financial planner, the personal banker and the likeassociated with the customer may be provided to the customer forselection during the pre-conference representative selection. Theapplication may also rank the representatives (either or both ofassigned representatives and representatives previously spoken with)based on customer input, experience in relevant field or otherwise.

While the customer is on hold waiting for a conference call, thecustomer may be presented with one or more productive options whileholding. The customer may be presented with information regarding thecustomer's wait until the connection with a live representative is made,such as a visual depiction of the queue of customers waiting forcustomer service related to, for example, a specific category ofassistance or a specific representative. The visual depiction may alsoinclude information related to the time to connection and may include a“snooze” virtual button or other virtual input mechanism that receivescustomer input indicating the customer's desire to postpone the videoconference with the representative. During the hold, the customer may bepresented with access to informational videos relevant to the upcomingcall. In some instances, the videos may be recordings of therepresentative for whom the customer is waiting or anotherrepresentative familiar to the customer. Similarly, the customer may bepresented with a widget or a portion of the application screen, such asa portion of a split screen for performing onsite research or offsiteresearch, providing games to play while waiting, providing a dataconsumption bar during the hold as well as during the call, providingquality of service options, such as choices for connection speed,quality of video/audio or the like, providing a listing of documentsnecessary and/or useful for the call and the like. In some instances, awidget or split screen portion provides access to the financialinstitution's online banking platform so that the customer may accessinformation regarding his or her accounts maintained by the financialinstitution.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the next stage of customer interaction, atBlock 130, is the customer participates in a conference with one or morefinancial institution representatives using the video conferenceapplication. During the conference, the customer may be provided withvarious functions for improving the conference experience, for example,document sharing, visual navigation, video chat and call controls andmultiple participants.

The application may present to the customer persistent call controls,such as for accessing an on-demand customer service connection or otherrepresentative connection. An interface of the application may providethe customer an opportunity to highlight or select portions of text orgraphics presented on the interface, such as highlighting portions ofdocuments that are being discussed between the customer and therepresentative. The control of these shared documents may be retained bythe representative or may be with the customer or both. Therepresentative may direct the discussion away from a standard documentto something more interactive such that the customer may have theability to access portions of the document and enter/change informationin the document. In some instances, the application may allow thecustomer and the representative to switch control of the document backand forth as necessary during the conference.

During a conference, a customer and/or a representative may need tobring one or more other people into the conference. This may be done bythe customer, for example, by the customer vouching for the additionalparticipant and, in some embodiments, verifying the additionalparticipant electronically. In some cases, credentialing of theadditional participant is by a verification process. When an additionalrepresentative is required on the conference, an interaction log may beprovided to the new associate to bring him or her up to speed quickly.The customer may have a trusted group of representatives who may bequickly brought into a conference. If the customer has not interactedwith a particular representative before, the customer may provide aconfirmation of acceptance of a representative, based on pre-existingfilters, review of provided representative information or the like.

In some embodiments, during a conference using the application, acustomer is given an opportunity to promote and/or demote levels ofconnectivity. For example, the customer may choose to change fromtextual to audible to visual to audio-visual interaction with thefinancial institution representative and/or the opposite. Such channelhopping may be logged, such as in an interaction log. Also, the customermay auto-forward a connection initiated from a representative from onedevice to another device, such as from the customer's tablet computer toa smartphone. In some cases, the customer may forward the connectionback to the original device or use a cross- and/or dual-channelpresentation. For example, audio of the conference may be presentedusing one device and video may be presented using another device.

At Block 140, the customer and/or the representative concludes theconference and the video conference application may perform one or morepost-conference actions. For example, an e-receipt (also called aninteraction log) may be finalized. The interaction log may be createdautomatically by the application during the conference and may include arecording and/or a textual representation of the words spoken during theconference. The interaction log may but used by the customer and/or therepresentative as a record of the call and the information/documentshared during the call. From the perspective of the customer, the logmay be used as a reference when completing tasks after the call hasended such as gathering or completing additional documents or followingup as necessary. In addition to voice recordings and written text, thelog may include, for example, copies of documents discussed, links toother information, highlighting and or notes taken during the call, andpossibly timestamps indicating when in the call various actions occurredor documents were reviewed/highlighted and the like. The log mayincorporate manual input as well. For example, the log may acceptconfirmation of portions of a conversation from one or bothparticipants. In some instances, one or both participants may be able toremove unnecessary or repetitive portions of the log as desired. The logmay include inset indications of highlighting of interface items and/ordocuments discussed during the conference. The participants of theconference may have different versions of the log, such as versionsallowing the customer to comment/edit within the log manual and versionsallowing the representative to comment/edit within the log manually.

In some embodiments, after the call has been completed archives of theinteraction log and any documents discussed, created, edited orotherwise are stored by the financial institution and/or by the customerdevice (for offline access). These documents may be retrieved by thecustomer, such as by using the application or by logging into thecustomer's online banking website portal. In some embodiments, theapplication prompts the customer whether to store one or more of the logand/or the other document(s) discussed and prompts the customerregarding the storage location. In some embodiments, the customer isalso given the option of communicating the log and/or other documents toone or more electronic destinations such as to one or more emailaddresses or the like.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a block diagram illustrates an environment 200wherein a customer 202 participates in a conference with a customerservice associate 204 using a customer device 210 and a customer servicerepresentative system 260, respectively. The environment also mayinclude a business system 240, other customer systems 280, otherbusiness systems 282 and/or external websites 284. The systems anddevices communicate with one another over a network 230 and perform oneor more of the various steps and/or methods according to embodiments ofthe invention discussed herein.

A customer device 210 may be configured for use by a customer or otheruser, for example, to access one or more other business entityapplications such as the customer video conference application 220. Thecustomer device 210 may be or include a computer system, server,multiple computer system, multiple servers, or some other computingdevice configured for use by a user, such as a desktop, laptop, tablet,or a mobile communications device, such as a smartphone. The mobiledevice 210 has a communication device 212 communicatively coupled with aprocessing device 214, which is also communicatively coupled with amemory device 216 and one or more input and/or output devices 224, forexample, an image capture device such as camera and/or a microphone. Theprocessing device 214 is configured to control the communication device212 such that the customer device 210 communicates across the network230 with one or more other systems, for example, the customer serviceassociate system 260. The processing device 214 is also configured toaccess the memory device 216 in order to read the computer readableinstructions 218, which in some embodiments include a customer videoconference application 220. The memory device 216 also may have adatastore 222 or database for storing pieces of data for access by theprocessing device 214.

The customer service associate system 260 may be a workstation used by arepresentative to communicate with customers using the video conferenceapplication. In some embodiments, the customer service associate system260 may communicate with one or more of the other systems or devices andmay perform one or more steps and/or one or more methods as describedherein. In some embodiments, the customer service associate system 260includes a communication device 262 communicatively coupled with aprocessing device 264, which is also communicatively coupled with amemory device 266 one or more input and/or output devices 224, forexample, an image capture device such as camera and/or a microphone. Theprocessing device 264 controls the communication device 262 such thatthe customer service associate system 260 communicates across thenetwork 230 with one or more other systems or devices. The processingdevice 264 is also configured to access the memory device 266 in orderto read the computer readable instructions 268, which in someembodiments include a customer service associate video conferenceapplication 270 having instructions for communicating with the customervideo conference application 220 running on the customer device 210and/or the server video conference application 250 running on thebusiness entity system 240. In some embodiments, the customer serviceassociate system 260 includes one or more datastores 272 for storing andproviding one or more pieces of data used by the representative duringconferences with customers.

A business entity system 240 is a computer system, server, multiplecomputer systems and/or servers or the like. The business entity system240, in the embodiments shown has a communication device 242communicably coupled with a processing device 244, which is alsocommunicably coupled with a memory device 246. The processing device 244is configured to control the communication device 242 such that thebusiness entity system 240 communicates across the network 230 with oneor more other systems. The processing device 244 is also configured toaccess the memory device 246 in order to read the computer readableinstructions 248, which in some embodiments includes a server videoconference application 250. The memory device 246 also has a datastore254 or database for storing pieces of data for access by the processingdevice 244. In some embodiments, the customer service associate videoconference application interacts with the server video conferenceapplication to access information, document or other data for use duringa conference call. In some embodiments, a product informationapplication 252 retrieves information regarding products being discussedduring a call between a customer and a representative and provides theinformation to the customer and/or the representative during the calland/or after the call has ended.

The applications 220, 250 and 270 are for instructing the processingdevices 214, 244 and 264 to perform various steps of the methodsdiscussed herein, and/or other steps and/or similar steps. In variousembodiments, one or more of the applications 220, 250 and 270 areincluded in the computer readable instructions stored in a memory deviceof one or more systems other than the systems 240 and 260 or device 210.For example, in some embodiments, the application 220 is stored andconfigured for being accessed by a processing device of one or moreother customer systems 280 connected with a representative throughnetwork 230. In various embodiments, the applications 220, 250 and 270stored and executed by different systems/devices are different. In someembodiments, the applications 220, 250 and 270 stored and executed bydifferent systems may be similar and may be configured to communicatewith one another, and in some embodiments, the applications 220, 250 and270 may be considered to be working together as a singular applicationdespite being stored and executed on different systems. In someembodiments, the applications 220, 250 and 270 stored and executed bythe customer device and/or an application stored and executed on one ofthe other systems is a stand-alone application 220 and does notnecessarily communicate or rely on any other applications for data,processing or otherwise, except for providing a connection with arepresentative through the application 270.

In various embodiments, one of the systems discussed above, such as thebusiness entity system 240, is more than one system and the variouscomponents of the system are not collocated, and in various embodiments,there are multiple components performing the functions indicated hereinas a single device. For example, in one embodiment, multiple processingdevices perform the functions of the processing device 244 of thebusiness entity system 240 described herein. In various embodiments, thebusiness entity system 240 includes one or more of the customer serviceassociate system 260, the other business entity systems 282, and/or anyother system or component used in conjunction with or to perform any ofthe method steps discussed herein.

In various embodiments, the business entity system 240, the customerdevice 210, the customer service associate system 260 and/or othersystems may perform all or part of a one or more method steps discussedabove and/or other method steps in association with the method stepsdiscussed above. Furthermore, some or all the systems/devices discussedhere, in association with other systems or without association withother systems, in association with steps being performed manually orwithout steps being performed manually, may perform one or more of thesteps of method 100, the other methods discussed below, or othermethods, processes or steps discussed herein or not discussed herein.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a block diagram is provided of an apparatus 300configured for allowing users to exit the customer service videoconference application while remaining on hold and subsequently benotified when their video conference is about to be initiated. Theapparatus 300 includes a computing platform 302 having a memory 304 anda processor 306 in communication with the memory 306. The memory 304 ofapparatus 300 stores customer service video conferencing application308, which is configured to provide users/customers the capability toconduct a customer service video conference.

As such, customer service video conferencing application 308 isconfigured to receive a first input 310 from a user device that servesas a request 312 for a video conference with a customer serviceassociate 314. As previously noted, in specific embodiments the customerservice video conferencing application 308 is configured to allow theuser to select a specific customer service associate 314 based oncriteria deemed important to the user/customer. For example, thecustomer may select a customer service associate 314 based on theirknowledge of the subject matter of the video conference, familiaritywith a preferred language for communicating during the video conference,similar interests/location/affinities or the like.

In response to receiving the first input 310, the customer service videoconferencing application 308 is further configured to invoke an on-holdfunction 316, which places the user “on-hold” or in a hold queue basedon the customer service associate currently be unavailable 318, forexample, the customer service may be conducting a video conference withanother customer or the like. In specific embodiments, once theuser/customer is placed on hold the user will be presented, via adisplay associated with the user device that requested the videoconference, a visual depiction of the hold queue which may indicate theplace that the user/currently stands in the hold queue specific to thecustomer service associate. In addition, the visual depiction of thehold queue may include a proximate wait time, which may be based on theaverage time for a conference. It should be noted that the average timefor a conference may further be refined based on the average time for aconference of the subject matter desired to be discussed during theconference currently in the hold queue.

The customer service video conferencing application 308 is furtherconfigured to receive a second input 320 from the user device thatrequests an exit 322 from the customer service video conferencingapplication 308 while the user remains on hold for the pending videoconference. In this regard, the exiting 322 of the application 308 doesnot close the application but rather places the application in a sleepmode. Exiting 322 of the application 308 by the user allows the user toperform any other function on the user device, such as activating andimplementing any other application, program, module or the like on theuser device.

Further, the customer service video conferencing application 308 isconfigured to communicate a notification 324 to the user of theimminence of the video conference 326 based on the impendingavailability of the customer service associate. For example, thenotification may be communicated 324 when the user/communicate is first(i.e., next) in line for participating in a video conference with thecustomer service associate. The notification 324 may be in the form of avisual notification/alert that appears on the user device displaynotifying the user of their position in the hold queue and requestingthat the user re-activate the customer service video conferencingapplication 308. In addition to the visual notification or in lieu ofthe visual notification, an audible notification/or alert may beprovided, such as an audio ringtone/chime or the like, which uponrecognition by the user prompts the user to re-activate the customerservice video conferencing application 308.

Referring to FIG. 4, another block diagram is provided of an apparatus400 configured for presenting a split-screen presentation of informationand/or functionality to users during a hold period prior to acustomer-service video conference, in accordance with embodiments of thepresent invention. The apparatus 400 includes a computing platform 402having a memory 404 and a processor 406 in communication with the memory406. The memory 404 of apparatus 400 stores customer service videoconferencing application 408, which is configured to provideusers/customers the capability to conduct a customer service videoconference.

Similar to the embodiment described in FIG. 3, the customer servicevideo conferencing application 408 is configured to receive a request410 from a user device to initiate a video conference 412 with acustomer service associate 414. As previously noted, in specificembodiments the customer service video conferencing application 408 isconfigured to allow the user to select a specific customer serviceassociate 414 based on criteria deemed important to the user/customer.

In response to receiving the request 410, the customer service videoconferencing application 408 is further configured to invoke an on-holdfunction 416, which places the user “on-hold” or in a hold queue basedon the customer service associate currently be unavailable 418, forexample, the customer service may be conducting a video conference withanother customer, temporarily away from their work station or the like.

In accordance with embodiments, once the user/customer is placed on holdthe customer service video conferencing application 408 is configured toprovide the user device with a split-screen presentation 420 ofinformation/functionality. In this regard, the split-screen presentationis defined as more than two portions or separate areas within thedisplayable area, such that each portion/area presents distinct andseparate information or functionality. Further, in accordance withspecific embodiments of the invention, customer service videoconferencing application 408 is configured to present a first portion422 of the split-screen presentation 420 that includes a visualdepiction of a queue of users 424 currently awaiting a conference withthe customer customer-service associate. In addition, the visualdepiction of the hold queue may include a proximate wait time, which maybe based on the average time for a video conference.

In addition to the first portion, the split-screen presentation 420 willinclude one or more other portions 426 or areas of the split screenwhich are configured to include other information or functionalityrelated or unrelated to the subject matter of the impending videoconference. Specific examples of the information or functionalityprovided in the other portions 426 are provided for in the discussionassociated with FIG. 5, infra.

Referring to FIG. 5, a block diagram is depicted of an apparatus 500configured for providing user/customers with video conferences andrelated information/functionality during hold periods while awaiting thevideo conference, in accordance with embodiments of the presentinvention. Specifically, FIG. 5 provides description of alternativeembodiments of the present invention. As previously described, theapparatus 500 includes a computing platform 502 having one or moreprocessors 506 and a memory 504 in communication with the processor(s)506. The memory 504 may comprise volatile and non-volatile memory, suchas read-only and/or random-access memory (RAM and ROM), EPROM, EEPROM,flash cards, or any memory common to computer platforms. Further, memory504 may include one or more flash memory cells, or may be any secondaryor tertiary storage device, such as magnetic media, optical media, tape,or soft or hard disk.

Further, computing platform 502 also includes processor 506, which maybe an application-specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”), or otherchipset, processor, logic circuit, or other data processing device.Processor 506 or another processor such as ASIC may execute anapplication programming interface (“API”) (not shown in FIG. 5) thatinterfaces with any resident programs, such as customer-service videoconference application 506 or the like stored in the memory 504 of theapparatus 500.

Processor 506 may include various processing subsystems (not shown inFIG. 5) embodied in hardware, firmware, software, and combinationsthereof that enable the functionality of apparatus 500 and theoperability of the apparatus 500 on a wired or wireless network. Forexample, processing subsystems allow for initiating and maintainingcommunications and exchanging data with other devices in the network.For the disclosed aspects, processing subsystems of processor 506 mayinclude any subsystem used in conjunction with customer-service videoconference application 506 or subcomponents or sub-modules thereof.

The memory 504 of apparatus 500 includes customer service videoconferencing application 508 is configured to receive a first input 510(i.e., request) from a user device to initiate a video conference 512with a customer service associate 514. In response to receiving thefirst input 510, the customer service video conferencing application 508is further configured to invoke an on-hold function 516, which placesthe user “on-hold” or in a hold queue based on the customer serviceassociate currently be unavailable 518, for example, the customerservice may be conducting a video conference with another customer,temporarily away from their work station or the like. It should be notedthat if the customer service associate is currently available, the needto invoke the on-hold function 516 is obviated.

In addition, to invoking the on-hold function 516 prior to a videoconference, the application 508 may further be configured to invoke theon-hold function 516 during a video conference, as the discretion of thecustomer or the financial institution associate, if the customer or thefinancial institution associate is interrupted or otherwise becomesunavailable during the video conference.

In accordance with certain embodiments, once the user/customer is placedon hold the customer service video conferencing application 508 may beconfigured to provide the user device with a split-screen presentation520 of information/functionality. Further, in accordance with specificembodiments of the invention, customer service video conferencingapplication 508 is configured to present a first portion 522 of thesplit-screen presentation 520 that includes a visual depiction of aqueue of users 524 currently awaiting a conference with the customercustomer-service associate. En example of a visual depiction of a queueof users 524 is shown and described in relation to FIG. 6, infra.

In addition, the visual depiction of the hold queue may include aproximate hold time 526, which may be based on the average time for aconference. In specific embodiments of the invention, the customerservice video conferencing application 508 may be configured todynamically adjust the proximate hold time 526 based on actualconference time experienced by a user who was previously in the queue ofusers 524 awaiting a conference with the customer service associate. Forexample, if the average time for a conference is ten minutes and thecurrent conference lasted five minutes, the proximate hold time 526 maybe decreased by five minutes to reflect the less than average conferencetime of the current conference. Conversely, if the current conferencelasted minutes, the proximate hold time 526 may be increased by twentyminutes to reflect the more than average conference time of the currentconference. In addition, the proximate hold time 526 that is indicatedto the user may reflect the average conference time for a conference ofthe subject matter for which those in the queue of users 524 desire todiscuss. For example, if one of the users in the queue has indicated adesire to conduct a video conference concerning home mortgage loans andthe average home mortgage loan conference lasts 25 minutes, theproximate hold time 526 will be determined based partially on the 25minute average conference time for home mortgage loans.

In addition to the first portion, the split-screen presentation 520 willinclude one or more other portions 526 or areas of the split screenwhich are configured to include other information or functionalityrelated or unrelated to the subject matter of the impending videoconference. Since the portions only occupy a designated area of the userdevice, in certain embodiments, the portions may be activatable, such asby clicking, tapping or the like, to increase the portion to full viewdisplay (i.e., maximizing the portion to full screen display).

The following provides examples of what information or functionality maybe displayed in the other portions 528 of the split-screen presentation520. It should be noted that these are examples only and are notintended to be limiting. In addition, while the information andfunctionality are discussed herein in relation to a split-screenpresentation 520 it should be noted that in other embodiments of theinvention such information and functionality may be provided by thecustomer-service video conferencing application 506 absent thesplit-screen presentation. In other words, the information andfunctionality discussed herein may be provided during in stand-alonepresentations during the hold period based on business entityconfiguration and/or user configuration.

The other portions 526 may include an onsite or offsite widget 530. Thewidget may be configured for researching the subject matter of theimpending video conference. An “onsite” widget may be associated withthe business entity conducting the video conference. For example, if thebusiness entity is a financial institution, the “onsite” widget mayprovide access to online banking, account balances or the like, whichthe user may desire to access in preparation for the video conference.An “offsite” widget may provide access to non-business entity-relatedcontent, such as links to general information related to the subjectmatter of the video conference. If the user chooses to access a linkprovided in an “offsite” widget, the user will exit the customer-servicevideo conferencing application 506 but remain on-hold and be notified,via visual and/or audio alert, when their video conference is about tocommence.

Additionally, other portion 526 may include service configuration 532that is configured to allow the user to select and/or adjust the levelof service provided by the video conference. For example, the user mayselect a desired connection speed, quality of audio, quality of video orthe like for the impending video conference. The user's data rate planwith their network service provider may dictate what level of servicethey desire for the video conference.

Moreover, the service configuration 532 may recommend/suggest that theuser transfer the connection to alternate network, for example transferthe connection from a cellular network to a Wi-Fi network to maximizeservice quality and/or minimize cost. In addition, service configuration532 may recommend/suggest that the user conduct a telephone conferenceas opposed to a video conference based on the subject matter of theirvideo conference. If the user chooses to transfer from the videoconference to a telephone conference, the application 508 may beconfigured to seamlessly transfer the communication channel without theuser having to perform any other functions and/or without the userlosing their position of the hold queue.

In addition, other portion 526 may include a game application 534, whichis configured to allow the user to play a game during the hold period.Other forms of entertainment may also be provided in other portion 526,such as movie trailers, music videos, news entries, songs, and the like.In a specific embodiment, other portion 526 may includemusic/video/entertainment programming provided by the financialinstitution or such programming may be configured to be programmingchosen by the customer. In addition advertising may be provided alone orin conjunction with the game application or other entertainment forms toprovide a revenue stream for the business entity.

In other embodiments, other portion 526 may suggestions for conductingthe video conference with alternate customer-service associates 536 whocurrently have shorter hold periods than the customer service associatedselected by or assigned to the user. For example, one or more alternatecustomer-service associates 536 having similar attributes to thecurrently selected (or assigned) customer service associate or otherwisebeing knowledgeable in the subject matter of the video conference may besuggested to the user as an alternative option for conducting the videoconference. In addition, to suggesting the alternate customer serviceassociates 536, a current average hold time for each of the alternatecustomer service associates may be displayed so that the user may choosea customer-service associate that minimizes their hold period. Inaddition, search functionality may be provided to the user that allowsfor the user to search for an alternative customer-service associatebased on subject matter, similar attributes, least amount of hold periodor the like.

The other portion 528 may additionally provide access, in the form oflinks or the like, to pre-recorded video presentations 538 related tothe subject matter of the video conference or otherwise related to theselected customer service associate. In this regard the videopresentations may be listed or otherwise displayed in order of theirrelevancy to the subject matter of the video conference and/or videopresentations conducted by the selected customer-service associate maybe listed/displayed first. For example, one or more of the pre-recordedvideo presentations may be conducted by the selected customer serviceassociate. In such embodiments, the customer-service associate mayprovide information about themselves, i.e., an introduction, theirbackground, or the like, or the customer-service associate may provideinformation related to the subject matter of the video conference. Inthe event that the user accesses and views one or more of the videopresentations, the customer service associate is provided, just prior toconducting the video conference, details as to which video presentationsthe user viewed during the hold period so as to further facilitate andadd efficiency to the video conference process.

In addition, other portion 528 may include a list of actions 540 (e.g.,a to-do-list) and associated instructions which the user may be asked totake to assist in the video conference or are otherwise required to betaken in preparation for the video conference. The list of actions 540may be in the form of a checklist, such that the user may check-offitems form the list once they are performed. Actions may includecompleting forms, uploading documents/forms to a business entityserver/portal for review/approval/discussion during the videoconference. The actions may require that the user exit the customerservice video conferencing application 508 to perform the necessaryfunctions, however, as previously discussed, the user may exit theapplication without losing their place in the hold queue. In addition,the other portion 528 may provide for a staging/presentation area forthe papers or documents that customer wishes to or has been instructedto upload/share during the video conference. In addition the stagingarea may provide for the user to create notes or a to-do-list of thetopics they wish to cover during the video conference. In suchembodiments of the invention, the notes or to-do-list may be visible tothe financial institution associate prior to and/or during the videoconference. In other embodiments, the application 528 may be configuredto capture the notes and/or to-do list by recording the voice inputs ofthe customer.

In addition, the customer service video conferencing application 508 mayinclude a storage unit 560, i.e., memory, configured to store the listof actions 540 or the documents 562 prepared for the video conference inthe event that the video conference is interrupted (accidentally or onpurpose) or otherwise does not occur (i.e., postponed) or the videoconference is transferred to a voice-only channel or a text/chatsession.

Additionally, the customer service video conferencing application 508may be configured to provide for display of a data consumptioninformation indicator 542, in the form or a data consumption bar or thelike, which indicates the current amount of data transferred and/or anapproximation of the amount of the data that will transferred during thevideo conference based on the subject matter of the video conference andthe average time and/or average amount of data transferred during avideo conference.

In addition, the customer service video conferencing application 508 maybe configured to provide an Automated Response System (ARS) function 568to provide the customer assistance with pre-video conference questionsthey may have about the video conference or the subject matter/purposeof the video conference. The ARS system may provide for the customer toinput their question and based on keywords in the question present thecustomer with one or more speculative answers to the question.

In addition, the customer service video conferencing application 508 maybe configured to provide for a pause hold feature 556 which isconfigured to be activated by the user to “pause” the hold period. Inthis regard, if the user wishes to prolong the period of time for whichthey are on hold because something the interim has occurred which willprohibit them from participating in the immediate future, they user mayactivate the pause hold feature 556. The pause hold feature 556 may beconfigured such that the user does not lose their place in the queue ofuser 524. For example, if the user was fourth in line when theyactivated the pause hold feature 556 they will remain fourth in lineuntil they deactivate the pause hold feature 556.

In addition, the customer service video conferencing application 508 maybe configured to provide for postponement feature 566 that is configuredto be engaged by the customer to postpone the video conference until alater time. Activation of the function may result in display of inputscreen for a future appointment time or the like. Scheduling of a futureappointment may require the customer be online at the scheduledappointment time or the application may be configured to call thecustomer prior to the appointment time. The call may be a telephone callor a visual display on a computing device on which the application 508is executed.

Moreover, the customer service video application 508 may be configuredto include “chat now” functionality in the form of an activatable “chatnow” key 564 or the like, which upon activation by the customerinstantaneously activates a chat session (voice or text) with afinancial institution associate. The chat session can occur in lieu ofthe scheduled video conference or can be conducted in preparation forthe pending video conference (e.g., ask questions pertaining to theto-do-list or the like).

The customer service video conferencing application 508 is furtherconfigured to allow the user to exit the application while remaining onhold. As such, the application is configured to receive an input 544from the user device that requests an exit 546 from the customer servicevideo conferencing application 508 while the user remains on hold forthe pending video conference. In this regard, the exiting 546 of theapplication 508 does not close the application but rather places theapplication in a sleep mode. Exiting 546 of the application 508 by theuser allows the user to perform any other function on the user device,such as activating and implementing any other application, program,module or the like on the user device.

Further, the customer service video conferencing application 508 isconfigured to communicate a notification 548 to the user of theimminence of the video conference based on the impending availability ofthe customer service associate. For example, the notification 548 may becommunicated when the user/communicate is first (i.e., next) in line forparticipating in a video conference with the customer service associate.By communicating the notification when the user is next-in-line asopposed to when the video conference actually begins, the user isafforded the time necessary to properly align themselves with the videocamera to insure proper video feed is provided to the customer serviceassociate. The notification 548 may be in the form of a visualnotification/alert 550 that appears on the user device display notifyingthe user of their position in the hold queue and requesting that theuser re-activate the customer service video conferencing application508. In addition to the visual notification or in lieu of the visualnotification, an audio notification/alert 552 may be provided, such asan audio ringtone/chime or the like, which upon recognition by the userprompts the user to re-activate the customer service video conferencingapplication 508. Moreover, notification 548 may be provided byre-presenting the application, such as re-presenting the split-screenpresentation or a presentation of the hold queue to the user thatindicates that the user is next-in-line for the video conference.

Turning the reader's attention to FIG. 6 a block diagram is provided ofan exemplary split-screen presentation of information/functionalityduring a hold period prior to a video conference, in accordance withembodiments of the present invention. The split-screen presentation 600may be displayed on any computing device on which the user has requesteda video conference. Such computing devices may include, but are notlimited to, a personal computer, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, asmartphone or the like. The split-screen presentation includes a firstportion 602 that occupies the upper half of the split screenpresentation 600. The first portion 602 includes a visual indication ofthe queue of users awaiting a video conference with the selected (orassigned) customer service associate. In the illustrated embodiment, thevisual indication includes the type of associate that the user isholding for as defined by the customer service associate's field ofexpertise, i.e., the subject matter for the video conference.Additionally, the visual indication provides the user's currentnumerical position in the queue and notifies that the user that they mayexit the app and that both visual and audible notification will beprovided shortly before they are connected with the customer serviceassociate. In additional embodiments, not shown in FIG. 6, the firstportion may include the proximate hold time for the user in conjunctionwith or in lieu of the position in the queue of users.

The split-screen presentation 600 additionally includes two otherportions 604 and 606. By way of example only, other portion 604 locatedin the bottom left-hand corner includes a widget, which provides theuser functionality and is typically related to the subject matter of thevideo conference. The widget may be onsite widget, such as a widgetassociated with the business entity conducting the video conference oran offsite widget related to an external entity. In addition, otherportion 606 includes links to accessible video presentations. The linksmay be text that briefly describes the topic of the pre-recorded videopresentation or the links may thumbnail images of the videopresentations with an accompanying topic. The links may besorted/presented in order of their relevance to the subject matter ofthe video conference or pre-recorded video presentations conducted bythe selected customer service associate may be presented first. Videopresentations provided for may be scrollable and or searchable withinthe provided area. Additionally, selection of a video by the user mayautomatically provide for full screen display of the video presentationor may be configured such that the user may choose full screenpresentation of the video. It should be noted that the split-screenpresentation 600 shown in FIG. 6 may include more or less than the threeportions shown. In addition, as described in relation to FIG. 5, theother portions 604 and 606 may provide for additional information orfunctionality other than a widget and/or access to pre-recorded videopresentations.

In one specific embodiment of the invention, one of the other portions604 and/or 606 are configured to be a private “share screen” widget thatis accessible and visible only to the customer(s) and not, at any pointin time, visible or accessible to the financial institution associate.Such a private “share screen” widget is beneficial if more than twocustomers (for example a husband and wife) are participating in athree-way video conference with the financial institution associate fromdifferent locations (i.e., using different devices) and the twocustomers desire to compare notes virtually without the financialinstitution associate seeing or having access to the notes or documentsdisplayed in the private “share screen”.

In summary, embodiments of the invention are directed to systems,methods and computer program products for providing functionality tousers during a hold period prior to conducting a customer-service videoconference on a tablet device, cellular telephone, personal or laptopcomputer or any other networked device having video conferencecapability. In specific embodiments of the present invention, the useris able to exit the video conferencing application during the holdperiod and be subsequently notified when the hold period is about to endand the video conference about to start. Such exiting of the videoconference application and subsequent notification of the imminence ofthe video conference, allows for the user to perform otherfunctions/execute other applications on the device executing the videoconference application while being assured that the user will haveopportunity to conduct the video conference when the user's position inthe hold period queue indicates they are next in line for conducting thevideo conference. As such the user is able to remain productivethroughout the hold period and does not have to limit their productivityduring the hold period to functionality provided by the video conferenceapplication. In addition, the notification process lessens thelikelihood of the user missing their turn in the queue when the user isperforming a function external to the video conference application.

This application incorporates by reference in their entirety each of thefollowing applications filed concurrently herewith. Each application isassigned to the same inventive entity as the present invention:

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13,651,966, entitled SYSTEM PROVIDINGAN INTERACTIVE CONFERENCE, filed Oct. 15, 2012, in the name of applicantCalman et al.;

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/652,120, entitled PROVIDING A RECORDOF AN INTERACTIVE CONFERENCE, filed Oct. 15, 2012, in the name ofapplicant Calman et al.;

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/651,798, entitled ADAPTIVESCAFFOLDING OF LEVELS OF CONNECTIVITY DURING A CONFERENCE, filed Oct.15, 2012, in the name of applicant Calman et al.;

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/651,970, entitled SPLIT-SCREENPRESENTATION OF FUNCTIONALITY DURING A HOLD PERIOD PRIOR TO A CUSTOMERSERVICE VIDEO CONFERENCE, filed Oct. 15, 2012, in the name of applicantCalman et al.;

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/652,326, entitledMULTIPLE-PARTICIPANT CUSTOMER SERVICE CONFERENCE, filed Oct. 15, 2012,in the name of applicant Calman et al.;

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/652,093, entitled REPRESENTATIVESELECTION FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE CONFERENCE, filed Oct. 15, 2012, in thename of applicant Calman et al.; and

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/652,175, entitled REPRESENTATIVEPRE-SELECTION FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE CONFERENCE, filed Oct. 15, 2012, inthe name of applicant Calman et al.

Although many embodiments of the present invention have just beendescribed above, the present invention may be embodied in many differentforms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments setforth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that thisdisclosure will satisfy applicable legal requirements. Also, it will beunderstood that, where possible, any of the advantages, features,functions, devices, and/or operational aspects of any of the embodimentsof the present invention described and/or contemplated herein may beincluded in any of the other embodiments of the present inventiondescribed and/or contemplated herein, and/or vice versa. In addition,where possible, any terms expressed in the singular form herein aremeant to also include the plural form and/or vice versa, unlessexplicitly stated otherwise. Accordingly, the terms “a” and/or “an”shall mean “one or more,” even though the phrase “one or more” is alsoused herein. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art in view ofthis disclosure, the present invention may include and/or be embodied asan apparatus (including, for example, a system, machine, device,computer program product, and/or the like), as a method (including, forexample, a business method, computer-implemented process, and/or thelike), or as any combination of the foregoing. Accordingly, embodimentsof the present invention may take the form of an entirely businessmethod embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (including firmware,resident software, micro-code, stored procedures in a database, etc.),an entirely hardware embodiment, or an embodiment combining businessmethod, software, and hardware aspects that may generally be referred toherein as a “system.” Furthermore, embodiments of the present inventionmay take the form of a computer program product that includes acomputer-readable storage medium having one or more computer-executableprogram code portions stored therein. As used herein, a processor, whichmay include one or more processors, may be “configured to” perform acertain function in a variety of ways, including, for example, by havingone or more general-purpose circuits perform the function by executingone or more computer-executable program code portions embodied in acomputer-readable medium, and/or by having one or moreapplication-specific circuits perform the function.

It will be understood that any suitable computer-readable medium may beutilized. The computer-readable medium may include, but is not limitedto, a non-transitory computer-readable medium, such as a tangibleelectronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, and/orsemiconductor system, device, and/or other apparatus. For example, insome embodiments, the non-transitory computer-readable medium includes atangible medium such as a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, arandom access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a compact discread-only memory (CD-ROM), and/or some other tangible optical and/ormagnetic storage device. In other embodiments of the present invention,however, the computer-readable medium may be transitory, such as, forexample, a propagation signal including computer-executable program codeportions embodied therein.

One or more computer-executable program code portions for carrying outoperations of the present invention may include object-oriented,scripted, and/or unscripted programming languages, such as, for example,Java, Perl, Smalltalk, C++, SAS, SQL, Python, Objective C, JavaScript,and/or the like. In some embodiments, the one or morecomputer-executable program code portions for carrying out operations ofembodiments of the present invention are written in conventionalprocedural programming languages, such as the “C” programming languagesand/or similar programming languages. The computer program code mayalternatively or additionally be written in one or more multi-paradigmprogramming languages, such as, for example, F#.

Some embodiments of the present invention are described herein withreference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of apparatusand/or methods. It will be understood that each block included in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and/or combinations ofblocks included in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams,may be implemented by one or more computer-executable program codeportions. These one or more computer-executable program code portionsmay be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, specialpurpose computer, and/or some other programmable data processingapparatus in order to produce a particular machine, such that the one ormore computer-executable program code portions, which execute via theprocessor of the computer and/or other programmable data processingapparatus, create mechanisms for implementing the steps and/or functionsrepresented by the flowchart(s) and/or block diagram block(s).

The one or more computer-executable program code portions may be storedin a transitory and/or non-transitory computer-readable medium (e.g., amemory, etc.) that can direct, instruct, and/or cause a computer and/orother programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particularmanner, such that the computer-executable program code portions storedin the computer-readable medium produce an article of manufactureincluding instruction mechanisms which implement the steps and/orfunctions specified in the flowchart(s) and/or block diagram block(s).

The one or more computer-executable program code portions may also beloaded onto a computer and/or other programmable data processingapparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on thecomputer and/or other programmable apparatus. In some embodiments, thisproduces a computer-implemented process such that the one or morecomputer-executable program code portions which execute on the computerand/or other programmable apparatus provide operational steps toimplement the steps specified in the flowchart(s) and/or the functionsspecified in the block diagram block(s). Alternatively,computer-implemented steps may be combined with, and/or replaced with,operator- and/or human-implemented steps in order to carry out anembodiment of the present invention.

While certain exemplary embodiments have been described and shown in theaccompanying drawings, it is to be understood that such embodiments aremerely illustrative of and not restrictive on the broad invention, andthat this invention not be limited to the specific constructions andarrangements shown and described, since various other changes,combinations, omissions, modifications and substitutions, in addition tothose set forth in the above paragraphs, are possible. Those skilled inthe art will appreciate that various adaptations, modifications, andcombinations of the just described embodiments can be configured withoutdeparting from the scope and spirit of the invention. Therefore, it isto be understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, theinvention may be practiced other than as specifically described herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for providing information to a userduring a hold period associated with a customer-service videoconference, the apparatus comprising: a computing platform including amemory and a processing device in communication with the memory; and acustomer-service video conferencing application stored in the memory,executable by the processing device, and configured to cause theprocessing device to: receive a first input from a user that isconfigured to request a video conference with a customer-serviceassociate, in response to receiving the first input, place the user onhold awaiting the video conference based on the customer-serviceassociate being currently unavailable, receive, during the hold period,a second input from the user that is configured to place thecustomer-service video application in a sleep mode that exits the userfrom the customer-service video application while remaining on hold, andupon exiting the customer-service video application, allows the user toactivate and implement any other application accessible on the user'sdevice, and during the hold period and while the customer-serviceapplication is in the sleep mode, notify the user of an imminence of thevideo conference based on an impending availability of the customerservice associate.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein thecustomer-service video conferencing application is further configured tocause the processing device to notify the user of the imminence of thevideo conference by one or more of an audio notification, a visualnotification or a return presentation of the customer-service videoapplication.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the customer-servicevideo conferencing application is further configured to cause theprocessing device to, in response to placing the user on hold, provide avisual depiction of a queue of users currently awaiting a videoconference with the customer-service associate.
 4. The apparatus ofclaim 3, wherein the customer-service video conferencing application isfurther configured to cause the processing device to provide the visualdepiction of the queue, wherein the visual depiction includes aproximate hold time, wherein the proximate hold time is dynamicallyadjusted by the customer-service associate.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1,wherein the customer-service video conferencing application is furtherconfigured to cause the processing device to provide, during the holdperiod, suggestions for one or more other customer-service associates,wherein the other customer-service associates currently have shorterhold periods than the customer-service associate.
 6. The apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein the customer-service video conferencing application isfurther configured to cause the processing device to provide the user acapability to pause the hold period.
 7. The apparatus of claim 1,wherein the customer-service video conferencing application is furtherconfigured to cause the processing device to provide the user, duringthe hold period, access to one or more video presentations, wherein thevideo presentations are associated with a user-requested videoconference category.
 8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein thecustomer-service video conferencing application is further configured tocause the processing device to provide the user, during the hold period,service configuration options, including at least one of connectionspeed, quality of video, or quality of audio.
 9. The apparatus of claim1, wherein the customer-service video conferencing application isfurther configured to cause the processing device to provide the user,during the hold period, a listing of one or more actions for the user totake during the hold period in preparation for the impending videoconference.
 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the customer-servicevideo conferencing application is further configured to cause theprocessing device to provide the user, during the hold period, a dataconsumption indicator configured to estimate one or more of a rate oramount of data to be consumed during the video conference.
 11. Theapparatus of claim 1, wherein the customer-service video conferencingapplication is further configured to cause the processing device toprovide the user, during the hold period, a widget for one of onsite oroff-site research associated with the impending video conference.
 12. Amethod for providing information to a user during a hold periodassociated with a customer-service video conference, the methodcomprising: receiving, by a computing device processor, a first inputfrom a user that is configured to request a video conference with acustomer-service associate; in response to receiving the first input,placing, by a computing device processor, the user on hold awaiting thevideo conference based on the customer-service associate being currentlyunavailable; receiving, by a computing device processor, during the holdperiod, a second input from the user that is configured to place thecustomer-service video application in a sleep mode that exits the userfrom the customer-service video application while remaining on hold, andupon exiting the customer-service video application, allows the user toactivate and implement any other application accessible on the user'sdevice; and during the hold period and while the customer-serviceapplication is in the sleep mode, notifying, by a computing deviceprocessor, the user of an imminence of the video conference based on animpending availability of the customer service associate.
 13. The methodof claim 12, wherein notifying further comprises notifying, by thecomputing device processor, the user of the imminence of the videoconference by one or more of an audio notification, a visualnotification or a return presentation of the customer-service videoapplication.
 14. The method of claim 12, further comprising, in responseto placing the user on hold, providing, by a computing device processor,a visual depiction of a queue of users currently awaiting a videoconference with the customer-service associate.
 15. The method of claim14, wherein providing the visual depiction further comprises providing,by the computing device processor, the visual depiction of the queue,wherein the visual depiction includes a proximate hold time, wherein theproximate hold time is dynamically adjusted by the customer-serviceassociate.
 16. The method of claim 12, further comprising providing, bya computing device processor, during the hold period, suggestions forone or more other customer-service associates, wherein the othercustomer-service associates currently have shorter hold periods than thecustomer-service associate.
 17. The method of claim 12, furthercomprising providing, by a computing device processor, during the holdperiod, the user a capability to pause the hold period.
 18. The methodof claim 12, further comprising providing, by a computing deviceprocessor, during the hold period, access to one or more videopresentations, wherein the video presentations are associated with auser-requested video conference category.
 19. The method of claim 12,further comprising providing, by a computing device processor, duringthe hold period, service configuration options, including at least oneof connection speed, quality of video, or quality of audio.
 20. Themethod of claim 12, further comprising providing, by a computing deviceprocessor, during the hold period, a listing of one or more actions forthe user to take during the hold period in preparation for the impendingvideo conference.
 21. The method of claim 12, further comprisingproviding, by a computing device processor, during the hold period, adata consumption indicator configured to estimate one or more of a rateor amount of data to be consumed during the video conference.
 22. Themethod of claim 12, further comprising providing, by a computing deviceprocessor, during the hold period, a widget for the user to conduct oneof onsite or off-site research associated with the impending videoconference.
 23. A computer program product for providing information toa user during a hold period associated with a customer-service videoconference, the computer program product comprising: a non-transitorycomputer-readable medium comprising a set of codes for causing acomputer to: receive a first input from a user that is configured torequest a video conference with a customer-service associate; inresponse to receive the first input, place the user on hold awaiting thevideo conference based on the customer-service associate being currentlyunavailable; receive, during the hold period, a second input from theuser that is configured to place the customer-service video applicationin a sleep mode that exits the user from the customer-service videoapplication while remaining on hold, and upon exiting thecustomer-service video application, allows the user to activate andimplement any other application accessible on the user's device; andduring the hold period and while the customer-service application is inthe sleep mode, notify the user of an imminence of the video conferencebased on an impending availability of the customer service associate.24. The computer program product of claim 23, wherein the computerreadable medium further comprises a set of codes for causing thecomputer to notify the user of the imminence of the video conference byone or more of an audio notification, a visual notification or a returnpresentation of the customer-service video application.
 25. The computerprogram product of claim 23, wherein the computer readable mediumfurther comprises a set of codes for causing the computer to, inresponse to placing the user on hold, provide a visual depiction of aqueue of users currently awaiting a video conference with thecustomer-service associate.
 26. The computer program product of claim25, wherein the computer readable medium further comprises a set ofcodes for causing the computer to provide the visual depiction of thequeue, wherein the visual depiction includes a proximate hold time,wherein the proximate hold time is dynamically adjusted by thecustomer-service associate.
 27. The computer program product of claim23, wherein the computer readable medium further comprises a set ofcodes for causing the computer to provide, during the hold period,suggestions for one or more other customer-service associates, whereinthe other customer-service associates currently have shorter holdperiods than the customer-service associate.
 28. The computer programproduct of claim 23, wherein the computer readable medium furthercomprises a set of codes for causing the computer to provide, during thehold period, the user a capability to pause the hold period.
 29. Thecomputer program product of claim 23, wherein the computer readablemedium further comprises a set of codes for causing the computerprovide, during the hold period, user access to one or more videopresentations, wherein the video presentations are associated with auser-requested video conference category.
 30. The computer programproduct of claim 23, wherein the computer readable medium furthercomprises a set of codes for causing the computer provide, during thehold period, service configuration options, including at least one ofconnection speed, quality of video, or quality of audio.
 31. Thecomputer program product of claim 23, wherein the computer readablemedium further comprises a set of codes for causing the computerprovide, during the hold period, a listing of one or more actions forthe user to take during the hold period in preparation for the impendingvideo conference.
 32. The computer program product of claim 23, whereinthe computer readable medium further comprises a set of codes forcausing the computer provide, during the hold period, a data consumptionindicator configured to estimate one or more of a rate or amount of datato be consumed during the video conference.